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C** hapter Three: "Moving Forward"**

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After what had been nothing but a full day of seeing nothing except the ocean for miles in every direction all around, the swift journey of the S. S. Arrow was finally coming to an end. At 9:15am earlier that morning, the lithe seafaring vessel had departed from the docks of Kanto's Vermilion City. Now, at 8:30pm, with everyone including Solar, Loki as well as Garth waiting patiently if not gratefully on its deck, the boat was pulling out of the inky darkness of night and into the brightly lit, secured, well maintained ports of Hoenn's Petalburg City which twinkled, shined along with seemed all too much a very welcome sight.

A half hour was required before S. S. Arrow finally was given permission to anchor at the public dock numbered 38. During the excited waiting around to dock, its passengers found great ways to entertain themselves which included looking for things that stood out in the city of Petalburg, releasing their pokemon to see the sights and even exchanging hearty shouts with folks on other passing ships that were either disembarking for far off lands or were coming in to anchor down after a long day of sailing like the S. S. Arrow.

"AHOY!" A young man near Solar, Loki and Garth shouted at a few people waiting around on a passing ship which was a bit bigger than the S. S. Arrow, "Hey, you lot! It's the middle of the night and you're disembarking? Where are all of you off to?"

"Where are we all going? Why to Kalos, mate. We've got a long trip ahead. Still, everyone is saying that Kalos is the place to be at these days. There's plenty of action to be found there." An older man with graying hair cheered back, smiling broadly with a graceful Altaria perched on his shoulder, "Wish us luck, won't you? There'll be choppy seas ahead."

"Howdy-ho, people. Didn't you pull into the harbor when we did?" A country dressed girl of maybe twenty with a grand gleam in her eyes roared from another ship to S. S. Arrow, a Sandshrew standing on her head in the meantime, "Yeah, I recognize that there name, the S. S. Arrow. Say, what are all of you doing coming here to Hoenn this time of year?"

"I've come to see family." A young girl called back in turn, holding a spoiled Meowth in her arms.

"My cousin's been on my back about coming here to spend the fall season with him and his parents." A boy yelled, patting a Croconaw on the head, "Not only that, I hear the gym leader in this city is worth taking a shot at."

"I'm here to see what kinds of girls Hoenn has to offer." A teasing, charismatic if not good looking youth - an experienced trainer of twenty standing with his Empoleon behind him - replied, giving the country girl with her Sandshrew a disarming smile, "I believe I'm not gonna be disappointed if there are gals like you to be found only minutes into my arrival here."

"Sorry to bust your bubble, partner, but I'm not from around here. I'm from Sinnoh. And I've already got a guy who has got a tight hold of my heart. In fact, he's had a grip on me from the day I met him ten years ago." The country girl of Sinnoh replied, smiling widely, "Want to know who it is, big boy? He's sitting on my head at the moment. Also, for trying to flirt with me, he has something to say to you."

At this, with much laughter from everyone who witnessed it on board the S. S. Arrow, the country girl's Sandshrew turned around on his trainer's head, bent over onto all fours, then showed off his butt for all to see; especially for the cool trainer who, like his Empoleon, looked quite insulted by the antics shown towards them. Clearly, in the past, he wasn't used to being rejected so casually by the opposite gender.

"It is funny. Scratch that. It is remarkable." Loki admitted, shaking his head at the good relationship shown between the Sandshrew and his country dressed girl of a trainer, "No matter how many years I have lived, no matter how many I will live on... The relationships between humans and pokemon continue to astound me in the best ways possible. That girl and her Sandshrew are excellent together."

"Excellent, eh? Just like that older guy heading to Kalos with his Altaria earlier, right?" Solar wondered to her Mightyena fellow, having noticed how the said Altaria had been very respectable to her aged trainer while having been perched on his shoulder, "Just like you are with sir Garth, no? Just like even that cool looking trainer with his Empoleon? Just like how I will be with young master August someday?"

"Yes, yes, yes and yes. You are correct on all of those things, Solar. And seeing as how you have begun to notice the friendships shared between pokemon and their trainers, you are one step closer to becoming the best hope to bring August's spirit back when the time comes tonight." Loki explained, giving his grass dinosaur of a companion a hopeful smile, "And even now, I know that you will bring happiness to my master's nephew, Solar. I believe in you for you believe in yourself."

"You're darn right I believe in myself. Sir Garth took an instant liking to me back in Kanto. Everyone actually took an instant liking to me, come to think of it. So why wouldn't August?" Solar joked, staying very optimistic, "Mind, it won't just be me that he'll like tonight, Loki. He'll like you and Master Garth also. You'll see. All of our traveling from Kanto and Hoenn tonight won't end in depression. It just can't. We've come here for a reason... and we're going to fulfill that reason!"

"Yes, I am with you on that, my friend." Loki agreed, nodding his head while admiring Solar's courageous attitude towards the tense situation they were about to soon face in Petalburg tonight, "We have indeed come here to this place for a reason. And by tonight's end, we will have rekindled hope in young master August's heart."

"Alrighty you two, we're finally heading into port. It seems like we've gotten ourselves a dock. We'll be on solid ground soon." Garth cut in on Loki's and Solar's chatting, fishing their respective pokeballs out of his coat pockets meanwhile, "While I go through the registering into Hoenn and showing the security my passports you guys are going to have be inside of your pokeballs. As soon as I get into Petalburg, though, I'll let you back out okay?"

"Okay." Was the shared reply on the faces of both Loki and Solar to their trainer's words.

"Good. Thanks you guys." Garth thanked his loyal pokemon, placing them into their pokeballs with bright flashes of light as he became thoughtful next moment, "Sit tight. In another half hour, we'll be out of the port and heading for Petalburg's gym. It's there that I'm supposed to meet Norman, the guy who called me last week about Shane's death. It's there that I... I'll see my nephew."

As Garth said this, holding Loki as well as Solar in their pokeballs in his hands before him, there was a pause of silence. Then, the older man from Kanto said softly with many a thought whirling through his packed mind, "To think that I haven't been back to Hoenn for close to twenty years. I imagined coming back here on a better note than this. Nevertheless, even though it's been forever, it's time that I saw my nephew. Not as his uncle, of course. No, I'll be his... dad."

And with that, putting away the pokeballs in his hands, Garth said nothing more until after the S. S. Arrow had docked, he had gone through the region registration, let Solar along with Loki out to walk through the streets with him to Petalburg's decorated, massive gym and then met with the said gym's waiting leader; Norman.

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After the S. S. Arrow had anchored, after he'd gotten through security with his valid passport as well as papers, the distance from Petalburg's port to its gym took about another half for Garth and his pokemon at hand to traverse. All the while during the said traversing, with her eyes the size of dinner plates, with her heart beating all too quickly in her chest, with both Garth and Loki repeatedly telling her to stay close to them, Solar did her best to take in the bright, massive, busy atmosphere of the glorious city all around her.

"Hey, stranger. Welcome to Petalburg!" A Vigoroth - a sapien, white furred, red crested, long clawed, monkey like pokemon standing on two feet - said to the excited female Bulbasaur at one point as she passed by, recognizing her bedazzled eyes like the ones that many other tourist pokemon had had before her in the past, "Enjoy your visit, won't you? Bring more of your friends next time."

"Popcorn, candied nuts, berries of all shapes and sizes! My master has everything that your sweetest tooth and craving gut could ever think of desiring!" A Munchlax - a smalltime, chubby, black/white furred pokemon - declared in pokemon on a street corner cart of goodies, eating his fill of a bag of chips as his master hurriedly sold his merchandise to gleeful children, "Hurry, buy what my master here had to offer or he'll be eaten out of business. Not by me but by all of you fine customers, of course... Uh, yeah."

"Halt! You've got a red light here, missy." A Hariyama - a sumo like, big handed, narrow eyed fighting type pokemon dressed in blue like his police officer trainer at his side - exclaimed, putting his over large hands in front of distracted Solar just in time before she was about to step out into a street busy with passing cars, "Okay. Light is green again. You're good to go now. Remember, safety first. Look both ways before you cross if you value your overall health."

Where Loki had grown quite used to the sights around him during his past years of traveling with garth around the world, Petalburg was still a magnificent place to Solar who had only been involved with the human world for little more than a week. True, Cerulean City had been impressive in its own fashion back in Kanto. Yet, looking at where the female Bulbasaur was now, that area had obviously been only a third of the size of this grand community which was populated by humans who, be it in any way or shape or form, cooperated with pokemon in most every way; for business, for exercise, for fun, for most everything.

"INCOMING!" A voice fearfully squawked out of nowhere, belonging to a pilot costumed Taillow who roughly landed smack dab onto Loki's head, recovered himself with a shaking of his body, then took back off into the air next moment without so much as an apology while laughing, "Everything's okay here. No broken bones. Ha ha, Gale the Talented survives another day!"

"More like Gale the Not So Talented." Loki grumbled grumpily, using his paws to smooth his ruffled mane once more with help from giggling Solar's vines, "Good thing he took back into the air so fast. Otherwise, my teeth may have grabbed a few of his tail feathers for souvenirs."

For what felt like eternity rather than thirty minutes, the business of the City of Petalburg enveloped the senses of Solar, Loki as well as their trainer Garth. At long last, though, they sighted their destination in the distance; Petalburg Gym, a grand structure colored brown, shaped like a large dome arena and complete with many a flapping banner on flagpoles, lights keeping it lit against the darkness as well as a motto engraved onto its front entrance that read this:

"Enter here strong and brave and you will leave here stronger and braver."

When they got to the gym's front desk in the very well-kept front lobby, as the young lady seated there coolly explained when confronted by them, it came as a surprise to Garth as well as his pokemon to hear that the Petalburg Gym Leader in question wasn't accepting visitors of any kind tonight. For his own reasons, Norman was - had been for the last week - awaiting someone unique.

"Norman, your boss, wouldn't happen to be waiting for someone from Kanto tonight, would he?" Garth asked of the desk lady at once who looked a bit taken back in turn.

"He is, actually. How would you know that, sir?"

"Because I believe he's waiting for me tonight. He's been waiting for me for the last week. I'm Garth Leroy Cousiteau, miss. I've just arrived from Kanto an hour ago."

"AH! Mr. Garth, sir! Why didn't you say who were from the start?!" The young lady in charge of the front desk exclaimed loudly, looking very flustered as well as embarrassed over having held up someone important to the gym leader with her rambling, "Hold on, one moment. I'll dial up Mr. Norman at once and let him know that you're here!"

"You're quite alright, miss. And thank you." Garth replied gratefully, looking a bit unsure of himself all of a sudden, "Tell me, is there any issue... with me keeping my pokemon out of their pokeballs?"

"Not at all. I understand that this place looks a bit empty at the moment but you are still standing in a Pokemon Gym after all. On regular days, everyone who comes in and out of here have their pokemon out in the open." The desk lady explained, purposefully putting a phone to her ear next, "Excuse me for a moment. Please, take a seat and relax. I'll let you know what Mr. Norman wants after I finish speaking with him here."

As the lass at the front desk got around to saying over the phone, "Hello? Mr. Norman, sir? This is Veronica at the front desk. Your guest from Kanto has arrived... Yes... Yep... He's here in the front lobby right now." Garth took a moment to step away with his pokemon out of earshot. In the silent, open, regal, empty front lobby decorated with plants, portraits as well as a clean fountain running with gurgling water, he kneeled down so he was face to face with Loki and Solar he noticed he didn't exactly look bad at the moment. Instead, he looked prepared. He looked braver than he'd been for the last seven days.

"Well, guys... This is it. This is why we've been traveling for the last week." He admitted, smiling small smile to boost his spirits for what was to come, "This is why we were on the S. S. Arrow all day long. Soon, we'll be meeting Norman, the leader of this gym. Soon, we'll be seeing my nephew, August. I expect you both to be on your best behavior from this point on. Understood?"

"Understood." Loki as well as Solar replied with a nodding of their heads.

"Solar, again, I cannot thank you enough for having come with me to this place. I only met seven days ago but you've gone so far out of your way to help me since... I have no doubts that he will not have a problem with receiving you as his first pokemon tonight. And in turn, you will make him strong in the future. Just as Loki made me strong."

There was a tense moment of thoughtful if not rallying silence shared between the two pokemon as well as their trainer in the grand lobby of Petalburg's gym. They had come so far and gone through many a trial to get where they were now. And now, as the lass at the front desk finished her phone call, as she called for them to hear what Norman had said to her, they were aware that reality could be cruel to some souls. Nevertheless, it wouldn't be cruel to them on this night.

No, tonight, Garth was ready to take the place of his lost brother and his brother's wife. He was ready to see Norman about adopting his nephew, August, and giving the orphaned boy the happy life he still deserved. Solar was just as ready to be adopted by August as his first pokemon ever. And Loki was ready to help in any way he could.

All three of them were ready for this night. Although not having been aware of it from the start, even though having had to fight to understand it now, they had always been ready for this defining moment since seven days ago.

"Mr. Garth, sir, Norman will see you now in the east wing gardens." The desk lady, Veronica, explained softly, standing out of her desk chair and leading the way towards a set of double doors next moment, "Please, follow me. I'll show you where to go."

Ten minutes passed where young Veronica quietly guided the visitors to Petalburg through the gym hallways. They took a left turn here, then a right turn there. They walked through decorated halls, plain halls, glass halls. Then, finally, Veronica stopped before another set of double doors, pushed the said doors open, motioned for her followers to step out the doorway before her and then she let them take in the extremely gallant, spectacular, wilderness setting around them. For everywhere that Garth, Loki as well as Solar could see, there were trees, shrubs, flora along with many more colorful things for the their eyes to calculate in awe.

What their eyes rested longest on, mind, was the open clearing straight ahead along the woodchip path where several figures were laughing, giggling and have a grand time overall. There was an adult man, maybe in his later thirties, dressed casually grand with his black hair combed slickly back. The man was observing two children, a boy and girl of eight years old, clambering over the steadily breathing, bouncy stomach of a large, sleeping Slaking.